


The Betazoid princess

by evilldarkside, froghbert_the_frog, greatbirdofthegalaxy, images_words, JadeAbarai, SaritAadam, The_Norsiest, tuvokholdmyhandchallenge, yel_halansu



Category: Star Trek
Genre: Betazoid, Betazoid Culture, F/M, Gen, Royalty, Trope Day, Uber mission
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-11 22:34:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28750005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evilldarkside/pseuds/evilldarkside, https://archiveofourown.org/users/froghbert_the_frog/pseuds/froghbert_the_frog, https://archiveofourown.org/users/greatbirdofthegalaxy/pseuds/greatbirdofthegalaxy, https://archiveofourown.org/users/images_words/pseuds/images_words, https://archiveofourown.org/users/JadeAbarai/pseuds/JadeAbarai, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaritAadam/pseuds/SaritAadam, https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Norsiest/pseuds/The_Norsiest, https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuvokholdmyhandchallenge/pseuds/tuvokholdmyhandchallenge, https://archiveofourown.org/users/yel_halansu/pseuds/yel_halansu
Summary: Written as part of our Discord RP. The USS Tribble Threat is tasked with taking a Betazoid princess to planet Pacifica for a conference.
Kudos: 2
Collections: USS Tribble Threat





	The Betazoid princess

**Author's Note:**

> Written by The_Norsiest, JadeAbarai, Chrysanthdreams, Tuvokholdmyhandchallenge, SaritAadam, greatbirdofthegalaxy, images_words, UniversalSatan, froghbert_the_frog, evilldarkside, Mary, and yel_halansu.

Jaale arrives in the transporter room, dress uniform immaculate, on this rare occasion looking appropriate enough to entertain guests.

He put in a special effort. They were receiving royalty, after all.

Sa'Kell arrives shortly after the Captain, also in dress uniform, with her hair in a tight bun rather than her usual braid.

After changing into his ornate medical blue dress uniform and tying his hair in a bun with a braid, Alceste enters the room and takes his place beside the other two, his arms behind his back. "Good afternoon, Captain, Commander," he addresses them with a smile.

“Good afternoon both. May I say, you look dashing,” Jaale smiles, beginning to feel like his usual self again after these last few weeks. Seeing the crew so excited about the visitation of the Betazoid entourage had kept him in good spirits.

Alceste blushes the smallest amount. "Thank you, sir."

The engineer operating the controls receives the signal that the party is ready to be beamed aboard and lets Jaale know.

“Are you both ready to meet a Betazoid princess?” Jaale smiles, watching the transporter pad spring to life.

Alceste nods silently, keeping his eyes on the pad.

Sa'Kell nods. She's curious about the princess. She hasn't known many Betazoids... or many princesses.

Anda stands stoically to the side simply waiting to escort the group as needed.

The transporter buzzes, and three figures materialize into view in the golden glow of the beam. A tall middle aged woman wearing an extravagant purple ball gown is flanked by two attendants wearing a uniform consisting of a skimpy baby blue tunic.

"Oh, Captain Tamaz! It is fantastic to see you again darling!" the woman says with a grand gesture. "I am Rwayiw Isa, and these are the princess' attendants, Rwarose Enaa and Arnos Cheal" she explains.

"You can call us Rose and Arnie" the girl chimes up as the boy nods in agreement.

The Captain smiles and takes the charming Betazoid’s hand and kisses it, respectfully. “It is a pleasure to see you, Madam Isa, and your delightful attendants. We aboard the USS Bartholomew are honored to be transporting you and the princess to Pacifica, and hope that you have a pleasant stay in the mean time.”

"Thank you, thank you, darling" Rwayiw drawls. "May I introduce princess Lwihasa Neazu, Keeper of the Mystical Gemstone of Trixa and heir to the Golden Mirror of Rixx" Rwayiw announces solemnly, and steps aside to reveal a 6 year old girl in an elaborate braided hairstyle and a poofy blue dress.

"It is an honor to meet you" the kid recites in a voice that betrays that she has been rehearsing it.

Jaale smiles warmly, walks over to the princess, squats slightly, and extends his hand.

“Pleased to meet you, princess. My name is Jaale Tamaz, I’m the Captain of this ship. Would you like a tour?”

"Yes please" Lwihasa replies politely with a bright smile as she shakes Jaale's hand.

“Of course, it would be our pleasure to show you around. This is Sa’Kell, my first officer, and Alceste, the Head Counselor. They are both very, very nice” Jaale says.

Sa'Kell smiles kindly at the girl. "It's wonderful to meet you, princess."

Alceste bows his head and gives the princess a warm smile. "It's an honor, Miss Neazu."

Jaale turns his attention from the princess to her guardian. “Do you require anything before I give the delightful princess a tour, Madam? I can escort you both to your quarters, if you need rest before we begin?”

The princess shakes Sa'Kell's and Alceste's hands politely as Rwayiw replies enthusiastically:

"Oh, honey, you would not believe how excited Lwihasa is to see the ship" she says placing her hand on Jaale's shoulder, "it is all she's talked about for the entire shuttle flight, it would be impossible to have her rest now, dear, just _impossible_ " Rwayiw says, emphasizing her words dramatically.

Lwihasa stands in the room, shifting from foot to foot with the demeanor of a child trying her hardest to not become distracted and wander off. The effort on her face is visible. She studies the crew's dress uniforms with curiosity.

Alceste notices her gaze on the uniforms and kneels so low he has to look up at her, letting her get a better look at the front his uniform. "Your dress is very lovely," he tells her earnestly.

"Thank you. So is yours" Lwihasa says. She hesitates for a moment before running her hand over the shiny fabric of his uniform.

Alceste laughs quietly and allows her to feel the silk.

“I see, well in that case, let’s get right down to it shall we?” Jaale beams, “where would you like to go first, princess?”

From his PADD, he produced a holographic cutaway map of the ship, with each room clearly labeled, so the princess can see where everything is.

As soon as the map lights up in front of her, the princess' dark eyes go wide and she looks at it intensely. "I want to see the science labs!" she exclaims. "Please" she adds in a small voice.

“Of course...right after I have a quick chat with Rwayiw.” The Captain looks back at her Guardian, offering her an arm. He indicates for Anda to keep close by the princess.

“My office, Madam?”

Anda stations themselves next to the princess. The stoic Ossurian says nothing, solemn behind their goggles but their demeanor is clear; they’re here to protect. Like a knight in waiting Anda prepares to keep close to the child.

"Of course my darling, of course" Rwayiw exclaims. "Now Lwihasa, be a darling and keep close to Chief Anda, dear" she calls back. Rwayiw takes Jaale's arm as the princess stretches out her little hand for Anda to hold it. Rose and Arnie walk side by side behind her.

Jaale leads the party out into the corridors, heading to his office. Alceste rises to his feet properly and follows the group. Sa'Kell also moves to join the group.

Anda looks down at the little girl. Their face is impassive but the blue security officer reaches out and allows the child to take their hand. Shoulders back, Anda leads her out of the transporter room and into the corridors.

***

Jaale leads the landing party to his office, making small talk with the flamboyant Betazoid woman as he goes. He was particularly fond of her, having met her several times at conferences, parties, and during shore leave. She was a lot of fun, especially when they’d both had a drink or two and a gossip during a spa day.

Alceste hangs back to stand beside the girl on the opposite side.

Lwihasa keeps close to Anda like she has been told. She keep glancing up in curiosity at the Ossurian every now and again. "Why do you wear those goggles?" she asks after a few moments.

Anda keeps their eyes trained on the corridors, at the ready for any signs of trouble. But they speak directly to Lwihasa “my species is nocturnal” they explain in a gruff voice “I do not see well with bright lights.”

"Ooh" she replies with amazement. "So at night you can see just fine?" she adds.

Anda nods and gives a simple “hmm” in reply. Their arm swings with the little girl’s movement as they walk.

Lwihasa picks up on this and starts swinging Anda's arm along on purpose, keeping a playful rhythm as they walk.

Meanwhile, behind them, Arnie turns to Sa'Kell: "I didn't know you could have uniforms without sleeves. It suits you" he grins.

She laughs. "There are several variations on the uniform. This is the one that's most comfortable for me."

"They're fancy!" Arnie replies with a smile. "It's good they're comfortable too, I don't know how you manage to wear those turtlenecks all day!" He laughs. It is very clear that he has not worn anything more covering than this tunic for a long, long time.

"You just get used to it after a while.”

"Are you OK?" Rose suddenly asks Alceste.

Alceste turns his attention to Rose, easily maintaining his smile. "Yes, I'm all right," he confirms.

While Arnie keeps chatting to Sa'Kell about clothes, Rose narrows her eyes ever so slightly in suspicion. "There is a sadness about you" she says gently. "Just... just take of yourself, OK? Being a counselor must be very draining"

Anda taps their badge with their free hand. The Chief alerts the security staff “princess to Captain’s office. Please maintain vigilance.” The odds of something happening are statistically low but the Chief has pulled out all the stops for this visit. Not to mention something about the small Betazoid has them feeling more protective than usual.

Alceste nods. "I will, thank you," he answers more softly.

Hota hovers close to the Captain’s Office, standing to attention as the party approach, keen to show Anda her dedication.

The party enter Jaale’s office, and Hota guards the door, just in case.

Alceste gives her a nod in acknowledgment before stepping inside.

***

Verelan idly checks her padd and - o shit.

Royalty being ferried to their destination? Today? DRESS UNIFORMS?

Verelan isn't entirely sure if the Free State even bothers with dress uniforms. Setal certainly never sent her any blueprints.

And so now she is faced with a fashion crisis. Look like a feral scientist in her ordinary uniform that she spilled raktajino on the sleeve earlier - but be in uniform? Or change into formal civilian wear, and - what? Try to pass herself off as a civilian? A Romulan civilian just hitching a ride on a Federation starship?

"Shan, I know we play our little games and talk shit to each other, but I need your honest opinion right now. I know you're a Starfleet brat and you'll understand all these nuances and ceremonies better than I do. Can I stay in this uniform, since I don't have a dress uniform and it's too late to ask my government for one...or should I go in civvies and hope for the best?"

Shan's eyes widen in what appears to be genuine horror. "The Captain ordered formal dress! You have raktajino on your sleeve!! You'll get us all decommissioned for disrespect of protocol and insubordination!!"

Well, not ALL. But - Elements, would she really get in trouble? And then where would the diplomatic effort be? Where would it leave Vashti??

Well.

Fuck.

She had always had a tiny, secret little wish to be part of a theater troupe.

She scurries out of the lab and rushes to her quarters before anyone can see her.

After changing in her quarters, Verelan returns to the labs and agonizes over whether to go back to work, thereby obviously not being a civilian, or leave the Zeta probe alone transmitting its data to Shan. All this because the Federation thought dress uniforms made sense. Fuck it. Shan wants to be an adult, let him. Verelan turns on her heel and heads for the cafeteria, grabbing her notebook and pen off her desk just fast enough that all Shan sees is a blur of blue silk.  
  
Zambinn notices Verelan leave the lab across from where she’s working today. The half Caitian looks about but her boss is nowhere to be seen. She sneaks over. “Shan” she whispers, taking note of his own stuffy appearance in the dress uniform. “Do you want a scone?”  
  
Shan looks to the door and then back to his work “I’m busy” he says curtly.  
  
Zambinn’s arms appear in the door. Her colorful box is open and orange and chocolate chip scones clink together as the woman shakes the container. They look tempting.  
  
Shan looks around. No Verelan, no other figures of authority or the procession party. He sneaks over and snatches a scone from the box. Then he quickly scarfs it down as he gets back to work.  
  
Zambinn smiles and returns to her lab.

***

  
Jaale goes to sit behind his desk, and motions for the princess and her Guardian to sit in the two chairs in from of it. The others will have to stand...he doesn’t have that many chairs.  
  
“Welcome again, all of you, to our ship. Is there anything that we can do for you at this moment in time, to make your stay as comfortable as possible?”  
  
Lwihasa hesitates before letting go of Anda's hand and takes her seat, swinging her legs off the edge. Rose and Arnie stand quietly at the back near the officers, and Rwayiw also sits and replies to Jaale:  
"Captain! _Darling_ , you have done more than enough!" she drawls, dragging the syllables out in a dramatic manner. "We are so thankful that Starfleet is helping us at a time like this, and in such short notice too! The journey will not take long, so please don't worry about us, sweetheart" Rwayiw exclaims as she adjusts the shawl on her ridiculously over-the-top gown around her shoulders.  
  
Alceste stands beside Lwihasa's chair as he listens to the others speak.

  
Anda positions themselves directly behind the princesses chair. They stand with arms behind their back and unmoving.  
  
Sa'Kell moves to stand beside Alceste  
  
“Of course, we are here to help any time you are in need, my dear Rwayiw. Peace and prosperity on Betazed is a prime concern to us. What may I ask is the reason for your attendance to the annual Federation Technology Development Conference?”  
  
"Oh darling, you didn't hear? Oh, our Osom passed away three days ago" she says, a shadow hanging over her normally exuberant demeanor, "and he went on to join his wife and the Four Deities" she says gently, glancing at the child to check she was OK. The Betazoids sense a hint of sadness come over the princess, but she is too young to fully understand the finality of what is happening. "Our Lwihasa needs to attend, simply _needs_ to attend darling, we cannot have the Neazu family absent at the conference, you understand, right, darling? Of course I will be attending most of those _dreadfully_ boring talks" she says, rolling her eyes theatrically, "I can't expect Lwihasa to pay attention when I myself can't bring myself to!" she sighs dramatically.  
  
"My condolences for your loss," Alceste tells her quietly. Lwihasa looks up at Alceste and nods formally.  
  
Anda glances down at the young child. Their own species believes in the concept of ‘it takes a village’ and not having a first parent or a second parent would be difficult for anyone, let alone one this small. Anda turns to Betazoid woman who is obviously in charge of the girl. At least the princess is being well attended to. They silently approve of Rwayiw.  
  
Jaale reaches forward and squeezes Rwayiw's bejeweled hand.  
  
“Of course, I understand. I'm so sorry for your loss, princess,” he directs the last sentence towards the young girl, and then, adds, “would you like to come to the cafeteria and our chef Sindari can whip you up a delicious cake? And then we could go and meet the robotic bees in our arboretum, would you like that?”  
  
Lwihasa's eyes light up with excitement. "Yeah!" she shouts, standing up and squirreling past Anda's legs and towards the door. Rwayiw stops her with a stern:  
"Aren't you forgetting something, Lwihasa, darling?"  
The kid stops and turns around, shifting from foot to foot awkwardly.  
"Please" she adds.  
"There's a dear" Rwayiw says, and offers her arm to Jaale again. "You lead the way, Captain" she drawls. Rose and Arnie smile at each other and take their places beside the princess.

***

In the cafeteria, Sindari sipped her tea in the comfortable silence going through the slew of messages and blurry photos of the delegation party. Apparently no one under the rank of Lt. knew how to take a clear photo.

Verelan appears, dressed in civilian formal wear - a blue silk dress inspired by the Terran Classical period because Verelan hyper fixates on things just like her writer does, gold earrings shaped like olive leaves, and a delicate gold bracelet. She is trying very hard to not look like she feels ridiculous. She goes to the replicator, makes a cup of tea, sits in the corner.

Sindari's eyebrow's raise as she watches Verelan move about. Not quiet sure why she was wearing that but also not complaining. Sindari smiles to herself and goes back to scrolling through her PADD distractedly.

Inn looks up when he notices a bright blue blob in his peripheral vision. that blob turned out to be Lt. Verelan, wearing a Terran style dress which was defiantly not regulation, but hey, more power to her. It at least looked more comfortable than the actual dress uniform.

The doors open and Jaale leads the Betazoid entourage into the cafeteria. As the party go on ahead, he hangs back slightly, taps on his comm badge and says quietly, “Note...acquire more chairs for the office,”

Sindari stands up in attention as they enter the cafeteria.

Anda surveys the room and makes mental notes of where everyone is. She sticks close to the princess.

Verelan glances up and quickly rises to her feet, saluting instinctively.

Sasha looks up from their book, noticing the group. They wonder how to properly greet royalty. Should they stand? They should stand. They stand up, setting down their book.

Alceste also follows the young girl closely.

Verelan squints. Is that a child?

Alceste greets everyone else and gives Verelan a gentle warning glance at her squinting, then follows the child to the kitchen. Alceste smiles at Sindari and the pins she's wearing.

Lwihasa's eyes scan the cafeteria with curiosity. They soon settle on Sindari, and she tugs Anda toward her.

Meanwhile, Rwayiw suddenly exclaims, "oh, my darling! That dress is _divine_!" drawing the room's attention to Verelan and her very much not-regulation outfit.

"Thank you," Verelan says a bit shyly, trying not to turn bright green. "Welcome aboard - uh, Your Highness?"

"Oh, nononono, sweetheart! I'm just the princess' guardian, Rwayiw Isa. That is the princess" she says, gesturing to the kid by the kitchen door. "Oh, please don't worry, darling, no reason to be shy!"

Verelan opens her mouth to reply, then thinks better of herself and closes it. "Ah, I see. Well, I hope you all had an easy journey here?"

"We did, my love, we did" Rwayiw confirms, her eyes traveling around Verelan's clothes. "Marvelous ship you have here, simply _marvelous._ "

Verelan can't help but smile at the Betazoid woman's infectious enthusiasm. "He's all right, isn't he?" she muses, almost to herself.

"He is, he is! As are your clothes my darling, just beautiful! Are you off-duty at the moment?" Rwayiw asks.

"I'm, uh..."

She's about to spill the elaborate backstory she's invented for herself about being a civilian, a political refugee from the Star Empire exiled for writing seditious poetry, etc etc etc, but - she's a shitty liar, and the Betazoid is so nice. It wouldn't feel right.

She sighs. "I clocked out early. I'm here on assignment as part of a diplomatic exchange with the Romulan Free State - this is relevant only insofar as we don't have...dress uniforms," she says, still puzzled by the concept. "And I had raktajino all over my sleeve. So I just...made a call and put on something nice. It's not protocol, but it was meant with respect." She inclines her head slightly in a hint of a bow.

"Oh-oh darling, you shouldn't have! Oh look at us, interrupting all your work and making you change for something so silly- and you're on such an important mission! All the way from the Free State no less! Perhaps it is better that we be on our way. But you look incredible, sweetheart, just _delightful_ " Rwayiw squeezes Verelan's arm before standing up to gather the others.

Verelan feels almost cheered up, and follows Rwayiw to mingle.

“Nurse” Anda gruffs in greeting upon being pulled to Sindari.

"Chief." There is a small playing on her lips at the sight of the Chief being tugged along. "I see the princess seems to be enjoying herself."

"I am, thank you" Lwihasa replies. "Are you Nurse Sindari then?" she asks a bit shyly.

Sindari bows her head respectfully. "I am, I hope the Chief hasn't been boring you too much." she teased.

Anda huffs “Our guest is being treated quite well”. The Betazoid child still clinging to their hand the Chief is careful to keep their emotions positive and polite. Anda manages.

Lwihasa blinks in confusion for a moment. "No, the Chief is very nice. They held my hand all the way here" she pauses for a moment. She picks up on the tension between them, but there are more important issues to attend to. "I was told you bake cakes" she says, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“They are very tasty” Anda acknowledges to the princess of Sindari’s cooking.

Sindari smiles, "I do on special occasions." she explained. "I had some made when we heard you would be joining us." She motion to the counter where the terrified looking kitchen staff stood in attention.

Lwihasa stands on her toes, trying to catch a glimpse of the cake in the counter, but she is too short to see anything.

Anda reaches down instinctively and picks the princess up so she can see the cakes.

Lwihasa eyes the cakes with her full attention while she wraps her arms around Anda's neck for support. "Have you got uttaberry cake? It's my favorite" she says.

Sindari nods and glares at the ensign to serve up a small slice of the fruity cake. Ensign Holden concentrates diligently on not dropping the cake as he handed a the small glass plate over to the princess.

Anda keeps one strong arm under the girl’s legs and allows her to cling to their neck. She turns to Sindari, looking at her beneath the goggles.

Arnie approaches Sasha, noticing them alone in the corner. "I'm sorry, I know Mrs Ina can be overwhelming at times" he says, gesturing to the booth where the older Betazoid is chatting with Verelan.

"Yes, she certainly seems like. .. a lot," Sasha says good-naturedly.

Sasha watches the child curiously. They'd heard that the Betazoid princess was coming, of course. They hadn't expected her to be so young.

"She can be" Arnie says, sensing their reservations, "but she means no harm. I'm sorry if we have made you uncomfortable"

"No, not at all," they reassure him. "I just didn't want to interrupt anything."

Sslith arrives at the cafeteria because her writer has no self control, just behind the group. She slips in, attempting attempting head to the replicator unnoticed.

Sslith's tall frame is not the best for going unnoticed. The Betazoid attendant quickly turns to her and chimes "Hi! I'm Rose. Could uh... could you show me how to use the replicator?"

Sslith nods. "Hello Rose, I'm Lt. Sslith. These are actually my specialty, I'm glad you asked." Sslith opens her mouth, ready to explain the delicate inner workings of the replicator circuits, how the programming works and the upkeep required, when she realizes what she's doing. She pauses, huffs an exhale. "You state your requested food and it appears on the serving tray. Very intuitive." She turns to the replicator. "Crickets, battered, fried, with human Buffalo sauce." She states, clearly, then turns back to Rose. "You have to be kind of specific. What would you're? I can help."

Rose giggles, sensing the enthusiasm of Sslith for the machines. "A cup of Jestral tea, please" she says out loud. The replicator for some reason does not buzz or produce the beverage.

Sslith shakes her head. "That must not be programmed into the system. If you can tell me your best approximation of what's in it, I'll see if I can... put it in." She stands poised at the little console.

"Ah, silly me!" Rose laughs. "It's just a herbal tea from Betazed. Anything that's nice and warm will do" she says.

Sslith considers. "Would you like something... fruity?"

"Sure thing!" Rose exclaims excitedly. "Anything you think is tasty!" she adds, not realizing what this may mean when talking to Sslith.

Sslith taps her chin, considering, and leans in to the replicator. "One hot jarrowberry tea with honey." The drink produced is a deep purple, steaming, with a pleasant, fruity smell, and undertones of spice. A large, dissolving purple berry sits at the bottom of the glass. She holds out the beverage.

Rose picks up the beverage and takes an experimental sip. "This is delicious!" She exclaims. "Thank you so much, Sslith"

Sslith nods and bows slightly before saying "excuse me," and turning away to shove crickets in her mouth without being disgusting in front of their distinguished guests.

Anda takes the cake plate that’s been offered to the princess. She carries both over to a booth and sets the girl down before placing the food in front of her. Anda stands by the booth next to her, still on alert.

Lwihasa takes the slice of cake and takes a small bite, chewing it for a few moments with great concentration before letting out a loud "Hmm!". Sindari's cake has passed the princess' taste test. "It's so nice! Thank you, Nurse Sindari" she says happily.

Jaale goes and sits with the princess, with his own slice of cake. He gives her a big cheesy smile.

“What do you think? Is our head chef good at cakes?” He asks her.

Alceste walks with the princess and Anda, sitting across from her and folding his hands on the table politely.

"She is the best!" Lwihasa exclaims as she takes another bite of her cake, waving at Sindari from her booth.

Sindari bows her head in thanks. "I am glad it has meant your standards, princess." She inwardly is beaming that the kitchen staff hadn't ruined the recipe. Looks like they will be getting a few extra hours of free time.

"I enjoy uttaberries, too," Alceste mentions. "Do you like them in anything else, or just cake?" he asks curiously.

"I like Uttaberry crepes too" Lwihasa replies solemnly. Cakes and sweets are Serious Business™.

  
After finishing her cake, Lwihasa wanders toward Sasha's table in search of Arnie, who immediately held her up and sat her on his lap. "Hello" she child says shyly to Sasha.  
  
Sasha looks at the child. "Hello," they reply politely.  
  
"Lwihasa, this is Sasha" Arnie says, turning to the child. "They work in this ship too, isn't that right?" Arnie offers, guessing that Sasha might be off duty.  
  
"In a way. I'm a civilian, but I am here on business," they explain, more to Arnie than the girl.  
  
"What do you do then?" Arnie says cheerfully, bouncing his leg a bit to keep the kid entertained.  
  
"I'm a journalist. Here doing research for a piece."  
  
"Oh, how interesting! You must be really smart!" Arnie says with admiration. "Look, Lwihasa! Sasha is a writer!" he exclaims, trying to get the princess' attention. The child looks at Sasha with her huge, curious dark eyes. "You write stories?" she asks.  
  
They nod. "I do. Right now I'm writing one about what it's like to live on a starship." The girl is adorable, and they can't help but smile a bit.  
  
Lwihasa lets out a tiny 'ooh' of admiration. "Starships are cool" she states seriously.  
"They have had lots of adventures" Arnie says to the princess, eyeing Sasha as if requesting they tell some to entertain the child.  
  
They nod. "Starships are very cool." They pause, thinking for a moment before settling on a story to tell, one about an epic battle with an entity that lived in space itself. A true story, although perhaps a bit exaggerated for entertainment purposes.

  
Lwihasa listens to the story attentively, and claps in excitement when it's finished. "That was so fun!" she says. "I would like to hear more of your stories some other time" the princess says with a small yawn- she was crashing from the sugar rush of Sindari's uttaberry cake, and Sasha's soothing voice was lulling her into a calm state. Noticing this, Arnie bounces his leg a bit more, and tells the child: "Look, why don't we go back over there with Captain Tamaz?" Lwihasa jumps off the seat and walks over, but Arnie hangs back for a moment:  
"That was really good" he nods at Sasha. "We should hire you to tell her bedtime stories!" he says jokingly.  
  
"You really think it was good?" They've never thought of themselves as being particularly good with kids. Or at telling stories. Writing stories, certainly, but... telling them is different, somehow. Especially telling them to a child.  
  
"Oh, for sure!" he exclaims. Even someone as quiet and introverted as Sasha cannot hide their feelings from a Betazoid, and Arnie, sensing their hesitation, reassures them: "I think you are really good with kids. You only need to want what's best for them- they will notice that, and the rest will come naturally. I say this as someone who looks after this kid for a living!" he exclaims. "Have more confidence in yourself" with a smile, he stands up to follow the princess to the other booth.  
  
They smile a bit at that. You only need to want what's best for them. They can't imagine how anyone could want anything different for that little girl, or for any child. They know from experience - very personal experience - that not everyone cares for their children the way they should... but they'll never understand it.

“Would you like to see the science labs, princess? Where we make things explode?” Jaale grins, finishing up his cake and straightening up his skant as he turns to the princess.

Sindari glares at the Captain.

Anda frowns at the explosion comment but says nothing. They have too much respect for their captain to mention the distaste.

Lwihasa's eyes go wide as saucers at the promise of excitement and explosions. "Yes! Yes please Captain, pleasepleasepleaseple-"

Jaale immediately wishes he hadn’t said that, as several glares are thrown his way. He gulps and reaches out his hand for the princess to take.

“Would you like to follow me?”

Emily-James walks to Jaale with a smile.

"Hey baby, how you doing?"

Anda gives another frown though they’re not sure why. The princess now taking the captain’s hand instead of the chief’s own.

Rwayiw and the rest of the party follow. Lwihasa takes Jaale's hand and turns around to wave goodbye at the group.

Sindari gives the group a polite nod as they leave.

Alceste gives Sindari a grateful nod in return and follows the others.

EJ immediately follows.

"Hey, Jaale-baby, stop ignoring meeee!" He whines obnoxiously.

***

  
Nando looks like he's back in the Academy again: his hair, growing just on the side of a little too long, flops over into his eyes enough for him to fumble around for a bobby pin, and though he's not in the typical attire of an old hoodie, he's still got one of his numerous black t shirts on with the sleeves of his lab coat rolled all the way up his forearms. He's on his fifth cup of tea and he's hyper focused on the lines and lines of DNA coding on his computer screen. Having run out of tea again, Nando drags himself out of his lab to go to the lab break room.  
  
Zambinn munches scones and does her work, today, cleaning beakers. She’s in dress uniform just in case. She tugs at the collar and stifles a groan.  
  
Nihvas looks at the notification of the visiting princess, standard request to wear dress uniforms, all the regular nonsense. Her roaches are just beginning to break out of their little eggs. She is watching intently and listening to the little clicking and scratching noises with an excited grin. There's no way that she's going to change and miss this right now. Though, she does spare a few seconds to shove her scarf into her desk drawer.  
  
Lieutenant Kim passes the lab Will is working in. She wasn't going to disturb him until she noticed what he was wearing. She steps in, "Dr. O'Shannon, please go and put on appropriate clothes. There is every chance the princess will attend the labs" she says curtly.  
  
Will, who is slouched horribly in his spinning chair, lifts his head from his notes and frowns, "but my re-"  
  
"Please look outside of your work for five minutes and make a good impression" she cuts in exasperatedly. She moves into the room fully and crosses her arms over her chest, "I'll look after your samples" it is clear she wouldn't leave until she had her way.  
  
Will returned to his room and begrudgingly changes into his dress uniform, even pulling on a fresh (non Devin-ed) lab coat. When he arrives back at the lab she finally leaves him to his work with a smug look of satisfaction.  
  
Lodzhal is finishing cleaning the vivarium, still unaware of the princess visit and that he should get changed.  
  


  
Anda checks that security is in place as they follow behind the captain and princess. Something about them both standing together makes the Ossurian nervous. Two people very high on their priority list to protect could be in potential danger at a moments notice.  
  
As soon as they enter the labs, Lwihasa lets go of the Captain's hand. "BUGS!" she shouts excitedly, rushing towards the vivarium areas. She presses her nose right up against the glass of the cage of Nihvas' cockroaches. Rose and Arnie spot Lodzhal and turn to giggle at each other. Rwayiw is standing back, watching the mayhem unfold as she chats animatedly with Jaale.  
  
Nihvas jumps about a mile and then laughs at the girl's enthusiasm. "They just hatched about a half hour ago," she tells the girl, then stands to address her superiors. "Captain, Chief," she nods at both in welcome, "I assume that our guest is the princess?"  
  
Alceste stands at Lwihasa's side. "Are there any interesting bugs on Betazed?"  
  
Zambinn finishes her tasks when she notices the party walking to the labs. She moves outside the door to her own and stands at stark attention. She tries to control her tail movement and wield it be still for once. She fails.  
  
"They are baby bugs?" Lwihasa asks Nihvas, her face still against the glass, which fogs up every time she breathes. "We have Ohkwana butterflies and Hunasa beetles and Rwalaya flies andandand-" she rattles off her list of favorite bugs to Alceste.  
  
Alceste laughs to himself and patiently waits for her to finish. "You'll have to show them to me sometime. We might have them here."  
  
“This is indeed the princess, Lieutenant. As you can see, she was very excited to see what you’re working on,” Jaale smiles fondly, watching the kid talk excitedly about bugs.  
  
"Yes" Lwihasa replies solemnly. "You have so many bugs here! Why is this a lab for bugs?" she asks, running from a vivarium to the next full of curiosity.

Zambinn continues to stand to the side. She’s in dress uniform, she’s standing at attention, if only she could get her damn tail cooperate. She frowns ever so slightly ‘stop it! Stop swishing!!!’ she thinks to herself. The tail disobeys and the ensign continues to quietly fret for no reason.  
  
Nihvas watches the little girl with fond amusement. "This is not usually a lab for bugs, princess," she says gently, "however many of us are working on projects that include insects right now. Would you like to look at some of the venom of my roaches under the microscope?"

Anda stands close to the princess and looks at the bugs. It’s been some time since they’ve been in the science lab and all of this seems very new to them. At the mention of ‘venom’ the Chief grows more anxious.  
  
"I would like that a lot" Lwihasa smiles, following Nihvas obediently to see the microscopes.  
  
Anda follows close by and gives Nihvas a scornful look beneath the goggles. They say nothing though and allow the scientist to entertain the princess.  
  
Meanwhile, Nihvas is holding the princess up by her underarms to look through the microscope and telling her to look at how the proteins interact with the lipids and peptides.

  
Lwihasa observes the chemicals under the microscope carefully as she listens to Nihvas' explanations. Anda arches their neck to look over Nihvas’ shoulder and keeps a careful eye on the princess.

Nihvas sets the girl down after she says she's done, and while she's running back over to her guardians and the other officers, Nihvas takes another quick peek through the microscope herself, remembering how magical her job can be.

  
  
Nando sees the troupe while carrying yet another steaming mug of tea. He rubs his eyes blearily, trying to process the little girl with a big poofy dress on. “No one told me we’d be escorting a princess onboard,” he teases, coming in closer to investigate.  
  
Zambinn isn’t sure what to do with herself but her tail is not behaving. She has the distinct urge to grab it and tie it into a knot! When she sees the captain the ensign ventures over. “Excuse me sir” she says softly “is there any way I can assist?”  
  
“That’s quite alright Ensign, everything is under control. If you would like to accompany us to the arboretum in a moment, you’d be very welcome,”  
  
“Of course” Ensign Shaw says and stands by.  
  
Nando completely forgets about how his hair is in a mess, sticking up oddly based on how he shoved it away with the bobby pin. “Good afternoon... Lieutenant,” he responds to Alceste, grinning. He takes a sip of his tea, but alas, it had only recently been boiled, so he pretends in vain like he didn’t flinch from burning his tongue.  
  
  
Lodzhal looks at the small child and blinks. He looks at the two young adult and blinks. He looks at his crew mates in dress uniform and blinks. He looks at his own skant with water spilled on it, and spider web on his arm. He definitely missed something. "Greetings," he tells Rose and Arnie with a ta'al.  
  
Rose and Arnie giggle some more, but try to stifle it and to greet Lodzhal politely in return. "Are you... are you well, Lieutenant?" they ask, looking softly between Lodzhal's messy uniform and his impassive face.  
  
Lodzhal nods. "I am, thank you. I was unaware we were having visitor today. I apologize for my attired."  
  
Rose and Arnie are trying hard to suppress their giggling, but they're not very successful. "Oh, don't worry Lieutenant, you look amazing" Rose says, and Arnie elbows her in the ribs. They both erupt in giggles again.  
  
Lwihasa turns from the vivarium and looks at them with suspicion. Her eyes narrow for a moment and she approaches Lodzhal solemnly. "Rose likes you and wants to kiss your ears" she says bluntly.

Lwihasa turns away and returns to the vivarium, leaving Rose in a flustered mess by the Vulcan.

Lodzhal raises an eyebrow toward Rose. "I am really flattered." He says with a flirtatious smile.  
  
Rose erupts in giggles again while Arno tries to keep calm. "You- you are very pretty" he says honestly, but still laughing. The situation is not that funny but once they have started laughing, they struggle to stop.  
  
Lodzhal smiles some more and comes closer to them.  
"I know. You are both really attractive as well."  
  


Rose and Arnie go silent for a moment, they turn to each other with a look of surprise, and immediately erupt in another fit of silly giggles again.

Lodzhal tilts his head and wait a moment for the two to calm down.  
"How long would you be on board?" He does not depart from his flirtatious smile.

"Oh, we must be arriving in less than an hour" Arnie says sadly.  
"Best babysitting job in Betazed!" Rose exclaims vapidly with a silly shrug.

"Oh that's too bad. I would have like to spend some times with you."

  
Jaale spots the two giggling Betazoids and Lieutenant Lodzhal flirting very openly to his right, rolls his eyes, and says, “Would you like to see the flowers in the arboretum, princess? There are more bugs too!”  
  
More bugs? "Yes! Yes please" Lwihasa exclaims. She waves goodbye to everyone in the lab and runs to Rwayiw's side to take her hand. Arnie and Rose follow them close behind, but Rose turns around to look at Lodzhal and quietly mouths 'call me' at him.  
  
Lodzhal does not have her number but he nods anyway.  
  
Anda prepares to leave and Zambinn excitedly forgets to care if her tail swishes. Alceste gives a departing nod to the room and leaves.

Realizing that he should probably get back to work, Nando takes one last curious glance at the newcomers before returning to his lab.  
  
Lodzhal takes his PADD and finally sees the notification. Oh, so that was what it was about!  
  
Will sits in his lab and wonders briefly when the princess will arrive so he could get dressed back into his comfortable clothes. It's only when he hears a few ensigns talking excitedly (and much too loudly) about how adorable the princess was, that he realizes he got changed for nothing. He groans and gets up to refill his coffee in the Lab break room.  
  


***

  
Devin, dressed in pink overalls and a white tank top, is singing loudly along to the j-pop blasting through his earphones. He rakes the leaves from under the large trees. In a bid to shut Devin up, Fer turns up the classical music in the arboretum. It backfires on him as Devin just sings louder and turns up his own music.  
  
Between songs Devin shouts "I could do this all day, darling!"

Eventually Devin annoys Fer enough that the ensign storms out of the room, abandoning his work. This pleases Devin greatly. He goes back to his task in comfortable silence, having turned off all the music. He starts pulling up errant weeds and enjoys the sound of the small ponds rippling fountain. Fer still hasn't come back and Devin wonders briefly if the ensign had been finally thrown out of an airlock. He puts on some upbeat pop songs and starts working on raking the sand around the huge rock situated under the heat lamp. He shimmies to the songs but his lines stay straight, spiraling around the rock.  
  
The party enters the arboretum, and while Rose and Arnie hang back, still quietly giggling and teasing each other, Lwihasa immediately runs off into the distance to inspect the alien plants and find cool bugs and climb trees, and all those fun things one does when one is six.  
  
Rwayiw, on her part, quickly spots Devin dancing around to the music in his headphones, oblivious to the world around him. She approaches him from the front so as to not startle him.  
  
Devin notices the person approach and pulls off his headphones, "hello there, Darling! If you're looking for plants you've come to the right place, how can I help you, Doll?"

He then notices the little girl and his eyes widen at the dress, "omigosh, adorable" he can't help but let the words slip out.

"Oh- oh, sweetheart! Your outfit is- well it's just _divine_!" Rwayiw says, surpassing Devin's theatrics as if it were a competition. "She is _adorable_ , isn't she, darling?"

Devin smiles broadly, bright white teeth showing from behind his lightly painted lips, "omigosh, this little ol' thing? thank you, gorgeous" he says, amping up the camp and swishing his hand at his outfit.  
  
He places the rake against the rock, "I don't recognize your pretty face! Are you new around here?" He says hands on hips.  
  
"Oh, darling, you flatter me" the woman drawls, "as if I could join Starfleet! At _my_ age! Nononono darling, we're just here to bring the princess to the Federation conference in Pacifica" she explains.  
  
Devin looks at the little girl in the tree, even princesses could have fun it seemed. He smiles softly for a second before it morphs into a teasing one, he turns back to her, "then surely you're the queen?" He curtseys deeply before her. He stands once again and giggles, "I hope you've been having an absolutely fantabulous time, Darling"  
  
"Ah, my _darling_!" Rwayiw exclaims with a chuckle, "you really are something else!" she says as she elbows him. "I am only the princess' Guardian, darling, I was the advisor when her mother was alive. We don't have queens in Betazed- unless you count me, of course" her laugh is a bit shrill but good-natured.  
  
He giggles at her words and shakes his head, "well then, Doll, from one queen to another, let me just say... I adore your vibes, babe"  
  
He then widens his eyes comically large, "omigosh, where are my manners?" He extends a hand to her, palm facing down, "Devin McManus, resident Pastel Monarch and part time plant tamer" he winks effervescently.

  
  
  


Alceste stands under the tree Lwihasa is climbing with his hands folded in front of him to catch her if she falls. "Have you been enjoying your visit so far?" he asks loud enough for her to hear.  
  
"I have! Thank you for showing is the ship" Lwihasa replies.

  
Once entered and the room secured Chief moves to the replicators in the arboretum and produces two toys from their home world. They’re very basic, a stick with two wings. The Ossurian brings it over to the princess and demonstrates how to use it. The Chief holds the stick between their hands and moves them back and forth to demonstrate. Then they give one quick motion and the toy flys into the air with ease.  
  
The princess watches intently before attempting herself and gives a delighted laugh as the toy soars and lands in the grass. She runs over to pick it up and does it again. But this time the toy ventures high and gets stuck in the branch of a tree. The princess turns with big sad Betazoid eyes and looks at the Chief.  
  
“I got it!” Zambinn calls and sprints over. She jumps easily and nimbly up the trunk before she reaches the branch. Well balanced she walks over to the toy and collects it before hopping down with an oomph. She all but yells ‘ta dah’ and hands the toy back to the princess.  
  
Alceste nods when Lwihasa answers and thanks Zambinn for her help.  
  
"Thank you" Lwihasa says with a big smile as she takes the toy from Zambinn. "You can jump really high!" she adds in awe of the Caitian.

Zambinn smiles brightly and leans down. “Thank you. Is there anything in the arboretum you’d like to see” she then whispers “I think I know this place better than some of the people who work here.” Fer, she means Fer.  
  
The kid puts her finger to her mouth and hums as she thinks. "Have you got any cool bugs?" she asks after a while.

Anda stands close by as Ensign Shaw entertains the princess. She seems to enjoy chasing the Caitian and with the occasional look to the Chief of security Zambinn helps her climb the lower levels of the trees. They take a moment to check out the robotic bee which has landed on a leaf. The half-human holding either side of the little girl to keep her balanced on the branch.  
  


  
Jaale receives a comm from engineering, announcing the ships’ arrival at Pacifica.  
  
“This has been a most wonderful visit, my dear princess, but I’m afraid you have reached your destination, and it’s time to go to a big ole boring conference!”  
  
After she comes down from the trees, Alceste leads Lwihasa to the beehives. "Have you ever had honey before?"  
  
"Yes! It's very nice" the princess smiles, grabbing some of Alceste's hair and stroking it when he crouches so his face is beside hers. The call then comes for her to leave, and she excuses herself

politely from her new friends.  
  
"I'm glad you think so." He chuckles and tilts his head towards her, then stands when she's called away to see her off.

Anda offers their hand to the princess.  
  
"Rwayiw Isa, my darling, charmed I'm sure" the woman drawls, introducing herself to Devin just as Jaale calls her. "Oh, I have to go now sweetheart, but we _must_ keep in touch, angel, we simply _must_. Keep working hard and looking divine" she winks at him before calling out for the others.  
  
"Of course, Doll. I'll find you on Space Insta!" Devin waves off Rwayiw, the princess and their aides before putting his headphones back on and going back to his tasks.  
  
"Rwarose, Arnos, beam down to Pacifica with the princess and take her to the hotel, there's a dear" Rwayiw drawls as she nudges the princess gently forward. "The Captain and I have a few things to discuss, don't we, dear?" she says, clinging to Jaale's arm and knowing full well that the things to discuss are, in fact, the latest gossip.  
  
Jaale grins, linking his arm with hers.  
  
“That we do, my dear Madam Isa. Perhaps we should head to the bar momentarily?”  
  
Rose and Arnos leave the arboretum and head to the transporter room as Anda follows them dutifully.  
  
Zambinn watches the group move off. Once no one is left in sight she excitedly hurries over to Devin to gush about the visit.  
  
Devin is raking the sand and doesn't notice Zambinn rush up to him but as soon as she makes herself known they spend some time gossiping and gushing over the adorable child princess.

***

Rose and Arnie enter the transporter room a bit deflated that they haven't seen the cute Vulcan Lieutenant on their way back. Still, they had a job to do- it was getting late and they needed to put the princess to bed. They say their goodbyes to the Chief to thank them for their help, they step on the transporter pad, and they're gone in a flash of light.

Anda watches as the party is beamed away. They wave to the little girl as she smiles back at the Ossurian. Once gone the Chief checks with the engineer that the transport went smoothly. They’re safely on the planet and Anda can rest easy. They return to normal ship’s duties.

When the room is nearly empty again, Alceste turns to Anda. "I'd like to thank you again, Commander," he commends them, then nods to the engineer on duty and leaves to change into his standard uniform.

***

  
Alexei hears that a Betazoid princess is on the ship, and puts on his best ushanka and hides under the counter just in case.  
  
Jaale and Rwayiw enter the bar, arm in arm, laughing about the time they got a bit too drunk at a formal Starfleet hosted post-convention party. Jaale orders them two whiskeys, and they sit in a booth together.

  
“I always adore our chats, darling. I was so proud when I heard you’d come a Captain, it’s just what you deserve,” she claps her hand on top of his and grips it.  
  
“But...I feel a sadness in you. What’s wrong, my dear Captain Tamaz?”  
  
Jaale sighs, and smiles at her. You can’t hide anything from at Betazoid.  
  
“This stays strictly between us, Rway, but...I’ve not been too lucky with my interpersonal relationships, as of late. He’s gone, now, but gosh was he a rogue...stole my heart right out of my chest, he did,”  
  
Jaale beats at his chest with a fist for comedic effect. But Madam Isa’s smile is fading.  
  
“Jaale...it feels like he ripped your heart from chest and shattered it into a thousand pieces...”  
  
She takes his hand in both of hers, gripping it tightly.  
  
“Whoever he was, he’s not worth it, my dear. No men are. You hold you head up high and continue making Starfleet proud, making yourself proud, is that clear?”  
  
Jaale smiles, trying not to tear up.  
  
“You’re right as always, my dear. Come visit us again soon, won’t you?”  
  
The two get to their feet and share a tight embrace.  
  
“Of course darling of course, your crew is an absolute delight, I am dying to come back already!”  
  
They finish their drinks, say their fond farewells, and then Madam Isa departs for the conference, leaving a smiling Jaale in the transporter room for a few minutes.  
  



End file.
